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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
Take "These Violent Delights" by Chloe Gong, move it to Harlem, make it black and Sapphic and swap the monsters for vampires. That is this book.
It started great, but the pacing got slow as things went on.
It started great, but the pacing got slow as things went on.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
felt too juvenile for me, i had hoped it would be better, premise was right up my alley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read This Ravenous Fate. This book was one of most anticipated books of the year and it did not disappoint. Everyone knows how I love sapphic vampires and this ones live in 1920's Harlem, they are childhood best friends to enemies to lovers and they are forced to work together to solve some murders that have shaken the community.
I loved the characters so much and they felt like they were real people and i loved the relationship betweeen the two main characters and how it evolved. IT had themes of girlhood and female rage that were incredibly well done. The ending left me wishing for more and i can't wait until the next one comes out !!
I loved the characters so much and they felt like they were real people and i loved the relationship betweeen the two main characters and how it evolved. IT had themes of girlhood and female rage that were incredibly well done. The ending left me wishing for more and i can't wait until the next one comes out !!
3.5⭐
Thank you so much to Sourcebooks Fire and Netgalley for providing free advanced copies of this! All thoughts and opinions are still my own.
Overall I think this was a solid fantasy debut. It's definitely a slow burn, with a more fantasy & lit fic focus that marketed, but overall I really enjoyed the story and themes!
I think one thing that will hurt this book was the way that it was marketed. This was pitched time and time again as a sapphic enemies to lovers romance. And while that is *technically* true, there is little to no actual romance in this first book.
Instead the focus is really on the themes of racism, classism, and privilege with the backdrop of 1920's vampires.
Elise is back in New York after running away to France to study music after the loss of her sister and best friend. And she is determined to save her youngest sister from having to take over the family business. She sacrifices her own future to take the title as heir, finding herself in a sea of mystery, lie, and deceit.
And it all becomes worse when she has to team up with her ex-best friend Layla, who is the vampire that nearly killed her 5 years prior.
From friends, to enemies, to reluctant allies, to attraction - these 2 get caught in dark mystery about what is happening to the vampires, is there a cure, and who is behind it all.
The plot itself is very slow moving and deeply explores who society chooses to help and how.
I loved the discussions and themes, I really loved how brutal and dark this book got at times, and I even enjoyed the progression of the girls' relationship. But the actual reveal was lackluster and honestly disappointing. Since it's the exact person you think it's going to be from page 1....
While this isn't going to work for everyone, I did have a good time reading this and do plan to continue with the series.
Thank you so much to Sourcebooks Fire and Netgalley for providing free advanced copies of this! All thoughts and opinions are still my own.
Overall I think this was a solid fantasy debut. It's definitely a slow burn, with a more fantasy & lit fic focus that marketed, but overall I really enjoyed the story and themes!
I think one thing that will hurt this book was the way that it was marketed. This was pitched time and time again as a sapphic enemies to lovers romance. And while that is *technically* true, there is little to no actual romance in this first book.
Instead the focus is really on the themes of racism, classism, and privilege with the backdrop of 1920's vampires.
Elise is back in New York after running away to France to study music after the loss of her sister and best friend. And she is determined to save her youngest sister from having to take over the family business. She sacrifices her own future to take the title as heir, finding herself in a sea of mystery, lie, and deceit.
And it all becomes worse when she has to team up with her ex-best friend Layla, who is the vampire that nearly killed her 5 years prior.
From friends, to enemies, to reluctant allies, to attraction - these 2 get caught in dark mystery about what is happening to the vampires, is there a cure, and who is behind it all.
The plot itself is very slow moving and deeply explores who society chooses to help and how.
I loved the discussions and themes, I really loved how brutal and dark this book got at times, and I even enjoyed the progression of the girls' relationship. But the actual reveal was lackluster and honestly disappointing. Since it's the exact person you think it's going to be from page 1....
While this isn't going to work for everyone, I did have a good time reading this and do plan to continue with the series.
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the advance reader copy.
I enjoyed the beginning of the book and found that the story felt like it dragged a bit in the middle. The general story and background for the vampires was a very cool idea and I enjoyed that it was a new take on vampirism.
I think the world building could have been explained better and a lot more put into how everything had started.
I did find the main characters very young and their decisions felt like they matched their ages.
Overall a good debut.
I enjoyed the beginning of the book and found that the story felt like it dragged a bit in the middle. The general story and background for the vampires was a very cool idea and I enjoyed that it was a new take on vampirism.
I think the world building could have been explained better and a lot more put into how everything had started.
I did find the main characters very young and their decisions felt like they matched their ages.
Overall a good debut.
slow-paced
I really really really REALLY wanted to like this book. Evertlything about this premise had me so excited especially after reading other black vampire stories. It just let me down and I don't know if I could see myself reading the sequel.
This needed more time in the oven and so much of the repetitive phrases CUT! And at the same time so much felt missing...the chemistry, the twists for the mystery, the proper world building, and utilizing the Harlem Renaissance setting! I just think the dialogue doesn't fit for the time period and after reading other books in the time period it made me so sad that more inspiration from that time wasn't utilized. Just gangsters, clubs, and segregation and that's it.
The pacing was off and was thoroughly confused by the characters inability to see the VERY OBVIOUS villains. Like I loved Layla and I was so confused by her actions later in the book when she was the maaain one against trusting the VERY OBVIOUS villain. I want Layla nowhere near Elise. Elise has treated Layla like shit time and time again being rich and barely growing throughout the book.
I also didn't process it was YA lol so maybe you'll like this better! I'm not big on how YA is written.
I'm just...It was a slog to get through this book but I got through it because I wanted to believe in it. I shouldve stopped 100 pages in.
This needed more time in the oven and so much of the repetitive phrases CUT! And at the same time so much felt missing...the chemistry, the twists for the mystery, the proper world building, and utilizing the Harlem Renaissance setting! I just think the dialogue doesn't fit for the time period and after reading other books in the time period it made me so sad that more inspiration from that time wasn't utilized. Just gangsters, clubs, and segregation and that's it.
The pacing was off and was thoroughly confused by the characters inability to see the VERY OBVIOUS villains. Like I loved Layla and I was so confused by her actions later in the book when she was the maaain one against trusting the VERY OBVIOUS villain. I want Layla nowhere near Elise. Elise has treated Layla like shit time and time again being rich and barely growing throughout the book.
I also didn't process it was YA lol so maybe you'll like this better! I'm not big on how YA is written.
I'm just...It was a slog to get through this book but I got through it because I wanted to believe in it. I shouldve stopped 100 pages in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Blood, Death of parent
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Racism, Self harm, Torture
Minor: Animal death, Slavery, Suicide attempt
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes